New England Mobile Book Fair

What? You’ve never heard of this place??? Well… what rock have you been living under?!

The New England Mobile Book Fair is an amazing, hidden gem-of-a-bargain-bookstore located in Needham, MA. All books are a minimum of 20% off retail price… all the time. Many others are much more deeply discounted — with NYT best sellers 30% off and 40% off over 50 current cookbooks (according to their website).

You can see why I am attracted to this place… but buyer beware! You need to be a savvy shopper, as the layout and orderliness of this place is quite intimidating and much of the organization is based on the books ISBN number… a number most folks are not aware of. The good news is that the staff is extremely helpful and most staff members have an uncanny ability to tell you where most books live… despite the cavernous space that is filled from floor to ceiling with books.

I went a few weeks ago and scored two great cookbooks… ones that I have been wanting for a while. Baking — From my home to yours by Dorie Greenspan … the ultimate baking bible. If you have never been to her blog, then please click the previous link and be ready to start drooling.

I’m also a big fan of food magazines and subscribe to them by the dozen. Some of my favorites include: Sauveur, Cooking Light, Vegetarian Times, Fine Cooking, Gourmet, Food & Wine, Clean Eating, Cooks Illustrated and Bon Appetit. Many times, I purchase the yearly “Annual Cookbook” for these journals — but only when I feel the illustrations and layout do the magazine justice. Sometimes I will also purchase other publications put out by the magazines… such as holiday cookbooks, “The Best of’s…”, etc.

So needless to say, I was quite pleased and excited when I saw the Bon Appetit, fast easy fresh Cookbook at the NEMBF. At 40% off the cover price… I couldn’t resist.

I went back to the NEMBF this past week to pick up some books for a friend. While there, I came across a book that had me drooling immediately… a must have for the foodie in your life and a great resource if you are buying yourself a post-holiday gift. 1001 Foods You Must Taste Before You Die is chock full of color photos, every detail you ever wanted to know about every easy-to-find to never-heard-of food. I am in love with this book and foresee it become a go-to for me and also great material for conversation starters on this blog!

So if you still aren’t done buying holiday goodies for all your family and friends… or if you have some holiday money burning a hole in your pocket, I suggest you head over to Needham and buy yourself a few foodie fetishes.